TruthinWine

When my Italian language teacher arrived in New York from Southern Italy, he thought that everyone had too much salt. Up and down the boulevards were hundreds of signs proclaiming, “Sale”, which is Italian for salt(sale‘). It must have been much the same for the conquering Greeks three thousand years ago as they arrived on the coast of Southern Italy, proclaiming this sun-washed vineland, Oenotria, a Land of Wine. They were not alone. Since the beginnings of recorded history, there are few civilizations that did not march into this semi-arid land with its striking, beautiful coastlines and distant mountains. Etruscan’s, Roman’s, the Byzantine’s, the Lombard’s, Norman’s, Spanish and Napoleon’s France had all laid claim to and left their imprints on this land. My family comes from this land, near the calf of Central Italy’s boot in Marche’, and it is here I’ll begin to look for what is essential for life in a Land of Wine.

Red wines in the Marches region are chiefly based on varities Sangiovese and Montepulciano, such as the DOCG Rosso Conero. A rare and ancient red grape here is the source for Vernaccia de Serrapetrona DOCG, a naturally sparkling wine, while the best white wines come from the regions Verdicchio grape. Abruzzo to the South does not have a DOCG, but does produce more than 50 million cases annually. Currently there is a wine revival in this mountainous region, known for its white Trebbiano d’Abruzzo and the local red grape, Montepulciano, producing improving quality(and value) in its Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC wines.

Speaking of mountainous, Umbria, lies to the East, producing the popular Orvieto, a white DOC, made from blended Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes, available in dry and semi-dry styles. It is the home of two red DOCG’s, one made from the native Sagrantino grape, Sagrantino di Montefalco, the other from a Sangiovese-Caniolo Nero blend, Torgiano Rossa Riserva. As vines head West towards the Tyrrhenian Sea,the eternal city of Rome anchors the region of Latium, most famous for lively Frascati. White Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes here too are blended for this popular cafe wine, as they are for Est! Est!! Est!!! d’Montefiascone, DOC, created in vineyards around Lake Bolsena, North of Rome.This popular region of Latium produces more than 67 million cases of modest wine each year!

From the small and insignificant Molise wine region, once part of Abruzzo, lies Apulia to the South, and like Latium, one of southern Italy’s largest wine producing regions. Running the length of the heel of Italy’s boot, Apulia is dominated by red grapes, and bottles over 122 million cases annually. Among the most highly regarded of the regions DOC wines is the ancient Negro Amaro based, Salice Salentino DOC, produced in the rolling hills of the sea-influenced Eastern tip of Italy.Formerly known as “Europe’s Wine Cellar”, this warm region is also known for the Zinfandel grape relative, Primitvo.There have been successful experiments here with International varieties, like Chardonnay and Malbec, as the region remains a hot bed for the improving IGT wine classification.

Campania, best known for Taurasi DOCG wines, lies to the Northwest of Apulia, and surrounds Naples.Dramatic improvements in vineyard management and winemaking recently have greatly benefited this ancient region, once the prized source of wine for the aristocrats of Rome to the North.Today, we can still enjoy those same time honored grape varieties of Aglianico, Greco and Falaghina. Taurasi is based in the red Aglianico grape, while Greco, first recorded in the 1st century BC, is the base of Greco di Tufo DOCG. Also dating back to antiquity is the sweet Fiano di Avellino DOCG, which is produced in still and sparkling versions.On the slopes of an extinct volcano to the South are the vineyards of Aglianico del Vulture DOC, in the region of dry hills, Basilicata. Matera and Terre dell’Alta Val d’Agri, both blends of recent DOC designation, are based in native varieties blended with Cabernet Sauvignon, and exemplify the new sensibilities arising from this ancient land. These wines are produced in red and rose’ styles, and can even appear as spumante or sparkling.

Calabria forms the toe of the Italian boot, where two old world Greek grape varieties dominate, red Gaglioppo and white Greco.There are no DOCG designations here, but numerous DOC’s, with Ciro’, produced in a range of styles, being the most celebrated. In this ancient land, wines of the IGT designation out number the DOC’s! Collectively, the South-Central wine regions of Italy produce more than 330 million cases of wine annually, with only about 21 million of those designated as DOC or above. Production measures such as these continue to reinforce the idea that in this Land of Wine it is more about quantity than quality.Yet, within these ancient regions there remain terrific wines at great values for the informed consumers of these unique ‘archaeological varieties’.

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean and home to a famous, fortified wine, which has been traded since the 18th century, Marsala DOC.The island produces no fewer than twenty-three DOC’s and one DOCG from the red Frappato grape, Cerasuolo di Vittoria.  Annually, Sicily produces as much wine as the prolific Veneto region in the North.If there is an up and coming Italian wine region, surely Sicily is in the conversation. Producing a broad range of wines, Sicily is today producing wonderful white DOC wines from native grapes, including Muscato and Malvasia.

Historically influenced by Spain and aligned to Genoa, the island of Sardinia,also is enjoying success with these same white grape varieties. Additionally, due to a unique and strategic geographical location, Sardinia is producing wines from grapes seen nowhere else in Italy. There’s the white grape Nuragus, believed to be brought by the Phoenicians, and grapes of Spanish origin, such as Carignano(carignan) and importantly Cannonau, a relative of Granache, thriving here in these ancient vineyards. Today there are 19 wine regions designated DOC herein Sardinia, and one DOCG, Vermentino di Gallura. Although planted throughout the Mediterranean region, the Vermentino of Gallura, on the islands north side, grows in very harsh conditions,and is weathered by the Mistral winds from the continent on thin soils to produce wines with pleasingly distinctive characteristics.

In the vast vineyards of this timeless land, we find Italy’s least affluent peoples and among the least economically productive regions in the country, as life here remains much as it has been. Yet, there has remained from the beginnings of migrations, a refreshing wind of optimism blown across this landscape. Perhaps all those centuries ago, people saw the dramatic seashore, the rolling hills bright with sunlight, and the distant mountains, and thought that this was a place to begin life anew.

Marsala Cellar

Today, these qualities still exist here in this Land of Wine.  Here we can have a foot firmly planted in the traditions of the past, and enjoy the wines of the ancients.  And,at the same time, we can look with optimism at the improved qualities(and values) of the wines produced in these very different wine regions of Italy’s South.I think that I am beginning to get it. The enjoyment and the nurturing of what this sun drenched environment offers us is simply Essential for Life!

Enjoy!

Note: ItalianMade.com, a great Italian wine resource.

If there was not an Italy in today’s world, one would surely need to be created.  Here, unlike other countries where there are specific wine regions, the entire of Italy is a vineyard. With twenty(20) demarcated wine regions, and a world of diversity within them(Alps to Africa), our overview will look first at the important wines of Northern Italy.

Northern Italy is topped by some of the world’s most dramatic mountains, surrounded by no fewer than five(5) countries and has two timeless seas as bookends.Sitting above the sovereign state of San Marino, there are nine(9) wine regions that together produce more than 380 million cases of wine and over 42% of Italy’s total wine production.Bronze Age tribes, Etruscans, Celts and Romans have all lived in these rich agrarian valleys, traversing their alpine hills over the ages to establish strategic hilltop towns, and with the evolution of the city states, it was not until the late 19th century that Italy became a united country.Our modern Italian classification system, modeled after the French AOC system, was enacted in 1963, long after the Grand Duchy of Tuscany had delineated areas of production for Chianti in 1713. Today there are around 300 areas of controlled origin or DOC(Denominazione di Origine Controllata) in Italy, and the North is home for 70% of them.

A trio of regions in the Northeast are known as Tre Venezie, and are today producing some of contemporary Italy’s most exciting wines.Friuli-Venezia Giulia is easternmost,and as a result of widespread vineyard destruction in the last century, has seen dramatic, modern improvement in its regional wines, primarily with International varieties like Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Pinot Nero(Pinot Noir). More than 300 million bottles of DOC or the higher ranked DOCG wines are produced in the Veneto region to the West. It is the largest producer in the North, home to refreshing Soave Superiore, DOCG, from the indigenous Garganega white grape and also the raisny, Veronesi Amarone Valpollicella, a DOC red wine blend. Italy’s Northernmost region is the unique Trentino-Alto Aldige, with its northern provinces, known as the South Tyrol, is historically part of Austria, and retains German as their official language.Here as we might expect, Central European grape varieties like Muller-Thurgau, Riesling and the indigenous red grape, Teroldego dominate.  This area is also the ancestral home of the white variety Gewurztraminer, from the village of Termeno(Tramin).

To the West lies Italy’s heartland. its agrarian and industrial bread basket, in the Po River valley and the North Central wine regions of Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Lombardy and on to the six(6) coastal DOC’s of Liguria(the Italian Riveria). Emilia-Romagna is one of the countries largest wine producing areas, the legendary home of light, sparkling Lambrusco, and the source for Italy’s first white DOCG, Romagna, from the Albana grape.In the rolling hills to the South, there is Tuscany, home to the often mutated Sangiovese grape.In its hillsides around the Montalcino zone there are alone over 650 different clones of this variety that can be found!  As a result, most producers plant a variety of clones in their vineyards for blending.

Chianti Classico, DOCG, located between Florence and Sienna, is the original zone of demarcation here in Tuscany. Surrounding this area there are six(6) other zones that qualify for DOCG status, Colli Aretini, Colli Fiorentini, Colli Senesi, Colline Pisane, Montalbano and Rufina. Further South of Sienna are the very noble hilltop zones of Brunello di Montalcino DOCG and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, which have their own clones of the Sangiovese grape. Earning its DOCG status in 1993, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, is Tuscany’s best known white wine from the native Vernaccia grape. A maderized dessert wine, either sweet or dry,  is also produced in Tuscany from a blend of air dried grapes including Malvasia, known as vin santo. Occupying the main part of the Po Valley to the North, Lombardy, is a hilly region that is home to Italy’s major lakes and greatest area of population.Arguably, the finest wines coming from this area are the traditional metodo tradizionale sparkling wines from Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco and Pinot Nero grapes grown within delimited Franciacorta DOCG, east of Milan near Lake Garda.A wide alpine valley further to the North is created by the Adda river, and the Valtellina is  home to the regions other DOCG’s, Valtellina Superiore and  Sforzato(Sfursat).  Both of these still wines are required to have DOCG prescribed minimum amounts of the local Chiavennasca(Nebbiolo) grape, and extended aging.These are wonderful wines for fruit and cheese plates.

To the West and North of Liguria lies the Burgundy of Italy, Piedmont. With most of the regions production centering around the market towns of Alba and Asti, Piedmont is the second largest wine region in Italy and has the most DOCs and DOCGs(9).It is the ancestral home of the Nebbiolo grape, used to produce the tannic, long lived DOCG’s of Brunello’s and Barbaresco’s, Gattinara’s and Ghemme(Nebbiolo is known as Spanna in the Northern region). Everyday regional wines include the most widely planted red grape variety, the low tannin Barbera as well as the grapey, Dolcetto which are the perfect match for the hearty cuisine here ‘at the foot of the mountain’. Piedmont is also Italy’s leading producer of spumante(sparkling) wines. The ancient variety Muscato d’Asti(Muscat) is nurtured by over 6300 growers in the delimited Asti and Cuneo provinces of this region, producing bright, fruity DOCG sparklers(white & red),as well as still wines.  An indigenous red grape variety, produces a sweet, sparkling dessert wine, Brachetto d’Acqui DOCG.Most popular among the still white wines from this region is Gavi, DOCG,a terrific seafood wine produced in the south of this region near its border with neighboring Liguria.Another popular Piedmont export, Vermouth, a fortified wine product and herb mixture, can be found here and anywhere you find a martini!

In the shadows of Mont Blanc, lies Valle d’Aosta, the smallest of Italy’s wine regions, on the western French-Swiss border.  Its vineyards sit in snow from Autumn to Spring and are reported to be among the highest in Europe. Quality is steadily improving here in the hands of small vineyards strengthened by a hand full of cooperatives.  Accounting for less than .05% of Italian production, here all regional wines of fine quality are give the DOC designation.It is the regulations, regional control and supervision of the DOC’s that continues to improve the quality of all Italian wines.

At the top of Italy’s wine quality pyramid, the DOCG wines, instituted in 1980, are subject to strict regulations on vineyard area, grape selection, yield, minimum levels of alcohol and aging requirements.  All DOCG wines are evaluated for their chemistry and taste prior to being sold.  If it is found that the standards were not met, wines are subject to declassification, down to even the lowest level, table wine(vino di tavola).In the 1970’s innovative vintners with a world view began producing innovative, quality wines outside of the DOC regulations, termed ‘Super Tuscans’. Most of these were so much more than humble table wine, so a new category above that tier, similar to the Vin d’Pays of France, was created, the Indicazione Geografica Tipica(IGT)s. Today, there are more than 120 IGT’s across the whole of Italy, each with unique qualities to offer and state regulated on the important elements of expanded production zones, varietal selection, yield, etc.

Italy remains one of the world’s largest producers of fine wines, one of the world’s great wine exporters, and among the leaders in per capita consumption.Across the Northern frontier and through its heartlands, the North of Italy, with its regional specialties, linguistic dialects, and independent histories, is still today very much like visiting different countries within one unified border.There are more than a thousand recognized grape varieties in Italy, and when combined with all of the other regional influences, it may be little wonder why the wines of the Tre Venezie are very different from the wines of its neighbor, Emilia-Romagna. Still, what unites Italy in our minds is their lust for life, the pursuit of la dolce vita(sweet life). Woven throughout the entire tapestry of this rich and unique culture is surely one of the elements Essential for Life: good quality wine. Salute’!

On the face of the post card were Dennis, Debbie and their family standing on a hillside above snowy Saltzburg. Boy, they sure looked delighted to spend the holidays in Austria! And then, I remembered a recent dining experience at a local Indian restaurant where a chilled bottle of Gruner-Veltliner really added so much our spicy meal. Suddenly, I became really focused on knowing more about the wine industry of this central Europe independent. Here in mid- Europe there have been grape vines since before the time of the Romans.  Vine lands fan around Vienna in this small, land locked country, with a long history of militarism and political change.Over the last thousand years invasion was followed by invasion, and it was not until post-World War II that the Austria we know today was actually created.  A huge corruption scandal in the mid-1980’s had turned the once prized, but now rustic wine industry on it head, leaving only the best producers of the country and new, stringent government standards.From that moment, this once Old World power began to race Forward into the new wine age. Today, some of the most exciting wines and the strictest governmental quality standards exist here in Austria.

A fairytale land of castles and alpine forests cut by meandering rivers, Austria today allows 30 wine grape varieties be  cultivated. Most of Austria is dominated by the Alps, but following the Danube and fanning East across the Pannonian plain into the Hungarian Basin, there are thousands of acres of vines. Most grape varieties are indigenous to the landscape or they are variety crosses that take advantage of the environmental conditions. Here to, we find International varieties, such as Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, but in small production volumes.  Chardonnay, known by synonyms Feinburgunder or Morillon, represents almost 7% of the total grape harvest and has found a home in Styria in the Southeast. With unique white grape varieties like Rotgipfler and Zierfandler, or domestic reds such as Blauer Zweigelt, Blauer Wildbacher and Portugieser, these rarely exported Austrian selections offer quality controlled wines not seen anywhere else.

What is exported are mostly the white varieties ( 45% of total production), lead by native Gruner Veltliner, and the Rheinlands Muller-Thurgau and Riesling, here produced in dryer, more full-bodied styles.Three(3) wine regions fan around Vienna, which is the smallest(and fourth) grape producing areas.  Beyond cafe’s and waltzes, the Wein(Vienna) is home to Austria ‘heurige‘ culture of vintner-owned inns/taverns/winebars serving proprietary wines.To the North and East lies the Niederosterreich(Lower Austria), the largest of the vineyard regions.Within its boundaries there are eight(8) sub-divisions which combine to produce most of Austria’s wine, the largest being Weinviertel(Wine Region). A sub-region with its own classification system, Wachau makes up the far Western border.  Talk about independent!  Directly South of Niederosterreich lies Wagram(Donauland), which is the home of the important Federal College & Institute for Viticulture and Pomology.

Four(4) sub-regions make-up the Burgenland, surrounding shallow Lake Neusiedl, a steepe lake on the border with Hungary, which is known for its botryized wines.Of particular note is Ausbruch, a botryized wine made around the town of Rust in Neusiedlersee-Hugelland, a territory where we also find the highly regarded Austrian Wine Academy. Made from nearly extinct Vitis lambrusca grapes, a local specialty wine called Uhudler is made in the warmer Sudburgenland district. South of this region lies Steiermark(Styria), where Sauvignon Blanc has successfully transplanted and we find family-owned farm outlets known as buschenshanke..The most famous of the districts sub-divisions is the region of Sudsteiermark, which produces a unique wine beverage produced from grape must, Strum, which is served during harvest.

Austrian Wine Law is similar to Germany’s, and regulates grape varieties, yields and zones of production.Unique to Austria are the added levels of Pradikatswein sweet dessert wines(Ausbruch, etc.) and that Kabinett level wines are placed in the QbA , or Qualitatswein level. All of these quality wines have their sugar weight uniquely measured at harvest in KMW or Klosterneuberger Mostwaage.Each of these wines are tested and evaluated by state labs and tasting panels to earn the red and white band that sits across the top of the approved bottles.Today, Austrians produce more wine than Germany, 2/3rds of which is QbA level or above, and consume about 75% of production, including almost all of the regional specialties. Their wine industry academics are among the best in the world and these small vineyards are the original home of bio-dynamic farming. Austrian Roudolf Steiner proposed his agricultural theories on self-sustaining, self-nourishing family farms and individualism in 1924, and remain widely practiced today in the vineyards of Austria. As their export market continues to expand annually in value and volume, the best of Austria can be found daily on our wine lists and wine merchant’s display shelves.

A food friendly glass of Stadt Krems Gruner Veltliner ($17.)from Kremstal in Niederosterreich sits next to me as I write this, and dream of a vineyard holiday in the fairytale land of the von Trapp’s and of Schwarzeneger, Austria. Aromas of green melon rind fill my head as I imagine a tourist visit to a time long ago where you can today still find warm country taverns down the road from a castle or a harvest festival where the wines never leave the countryside. It sounds wonderful to me. And at the same time, that Austrian New Age independence seems right as home in this setting.  Perhaps that is one of the reasons that would put that postcard smile on the faces of my traveling friends. I can only assume that they too are enjoying the feeling that comes from the Old World racing Forward.

Prosit! (Cheers)

No longer defined by the likes of Blue Nun and Liebfraumilch, Germany today produces wines of consistent quality on the Northern edge of greatness. Vineyards here are further North than the U.S.- Canadian border and are concentrated in the Southwest of the country, using the nearby rivers to help prevent frosts in their marginal climate. It is a wonder they can grow winegrapes at all, yet have been doing it since Roman times and today are the world’s 6th largest producer. Church vineyard ownership ended in 1803 when Napoleon conquered the Rhein and divided up all the parcels to be sold. Today Germany has more than 30,000 individual vineyard sites and more than 100,000 grape growers!

In 1971, as an attempt to standardize quality, Germany declared that there were eleven historic wine regions(anbaugebite), which grew to 13 following re-unification.  The minimum designated vineyard acreage was set at more than 12.5 acres, thereby reducing the total number of vineyard sites but increasing the number of owners. Accounting for most of Germany’s production are the four(4) most important regions(south to north): the warmer Pfalz, with its heavier soils is Germany’s largest producer; the Rheinhessen, Germany’s largest wine growing region; the famous vineyards of the Rheingau; and the steep, slate slopes of the Mosel, which produces Rieslings characterized by citrus acidity and minerality.These regions are further broken down into smaller to smaller sub-divisions: district or commune(bereiche), large site or collective(grosslage) and individual sites or vineyard(einzellage). One of the countries most northerly regions, the Ahr, has a unique combination of soils and topography that combine to create an environment for some of Germany’s best red wines. Basking in the sunshine to the east of Pfalz, is Germany’s largest red wine region, Wurttemberg, which has more humidity than the other wine regions.

This is ground zero for the irrepressible Riesling grape, which is represented in about 22% of Germany’s vineyards. The next most popular white varietal is the Riesling cross, Muller-Thurgau, which is not particularly notable, except that all that Liebfraumilch has to come from somewhere.  The sweet stuff is still Germany’s largest wine export!. Most prominent of the red varieties(less than 15% of total) is Spatburgunder, a synonym for Pinot Noir. Due to short season ripening issues, most German wines are fermented as dry as possible so that the alcohol gives the wine stability. In all but the highest quality levels, adding sweet, fermented grape juice is allowable to bring the wines into balance prior to a completed fermentation.

Even as most vineyards are planted on hills and slopes, the annual ripening of fruit remains an issue.  But German wine growers, long required to hand harvest where no machines can go, have turned this to their advantage.  Grapes are harvested based on ripeness levels or in other words sugar content of the grapes. Measured in must weight(density of the juice), by degrees Oechsle, the higher sugar levels at harvest result in the higher quality of the wine. At the top of the sweet pyramid are the rare and laborious Eiswein(icewines), and the overripe, hand selected berries afflicted by edelfaule(noble rot), designated TBA or Trockenbeerenauslese.

Most of us rarely experience some of the greatest dessert wines on the planet that are painstakingly produced in Germany.  What we find at our local wine merchants comes from the middle tiers of Germany’s quality pyramid. Today, more than 99% of exported production comes from the QbA and Qualitatswein Mit Pradikat quality levels. As with the top tiers, these wines of graduated ripeness are ranked based on their qualities at the time of harvest. In point of fact, the suffix lese translates to “picking”. Each of these wines has passed a panel and chemical analysis, receiving an AP certification number(Amitliche Prufungsnummer) which must appear on every bottle. Wines with ‘unique attributes’ are designated, QmP, according to ripeness level, qualities and alcohol. Kabinett, Spatlese and Auslese wines range from dry to off-dry, have great acidity, and are the perfect partner for most foods.

In an attempt to simplify the German wine label, the added terms “Classic” and “Selection” were introduced with the 2000 vintage. Consumers should expect to find wines labeled Classic to be dry and above average in qualities.  The Selection designation represents wines that are among the best of the region, originate from an individual site and be in an off-dry style.Grapes that are high in acid, but low in sugar are perfect for sparkling wines.  Germany produces excellent semi-dry sparklers from the Charmat(bulk) process, called sekt.

In truth, it is very hard for consumers to go wrong with today’s wines from Germany.  Easy food pairings, high quality standards that are government certified, and labels designed to describe exactly what is found in the bottle all combine to make German wines a great addition to the contemporary cuisines we bring to the table. Savvy shoppers also realize that for everything that goes into bringing these quality wines to market, they generally represent very good dollar to quality values.Our dinner table the other evening was graced with a $17 bottle of Dr. Loosen Blue Slate Kabinett from the Mosel, filled with green apple & melon, great balance and focused length.  That orange glaze on our plates never had it so good! I should have expected it, realizing that the wine came from a consistent producer of high quality wines, on the cutting Northern Edge of Greatness!

Prost!

Note: Refer to TRUTH in ADVERTISING: Variety & Place Labels(08/29/09) for more details.

Spain has been a crossroad and the end of the world, a home to Celts in its Northwestern corner and Phoenicians across the South. Following its centuries of occupation by wine loving Romans, there were the invading Germanic tribes(Visigoths) and non-alcohol loving Moors that left their marks on the Iberian Peninsula and its peoples. Today’s Spain is reflected by and driven by a variety of distinct cultures, geography and climates, and officially recognized languages(4), all under a single constitutional monarch with multiple autonomous communities/regions. Like the U.S., it can be our cultural tapestry of differences that make us great.And with the winds of change blowing across the high plains of La Mancha, todays Spainish wine industry is being revitalized.

Following the late-19th century outbreak of phylloxera in vineyards across the Pyrenees in France, many French wine professionals brought their knowledge into Spain to start a progressive change from 3000 segregated years of simple, rustic wines. Improved vineyard and varietal management, as well as aging in smaller oak casks improved Spanish wines until the Spanish Civil War, a right wing authoritarian government of Franco, and then, again a World War stalled its march toward more progress.Throughout all of this remained the woven tapestry of autonomy in Spain’s independent and diverse regions. Today, wine-loving Spain has the largest grape acreage in the world, planted across its 17 autonomous regions, and due to small yields in harsh, dry environments is third in world-wide production.Here we can find more than 200 indigenous grape varieties, but today only about two dozen(including international varieties) make up around 80% of wine production.

Now part of the standardized European Union, the Spanish wine law is different from the French in that it regulates barrel and bottle aging.There are two broad categories of regulated Spanish wine: simple, rustic table wines(Vinos de Mesa) which are seldom exported and the broader Quality Wines Produced in a Specific Region(VCPRD-QWPSR), which is an umbrella for specific estates, regions and production standards.  Each of Spain’s 63 DO’s(largest category in their quality pyramid)and its two DOCa’s have a regulatory council that mandates and tests for standards.Only Rioja in the North and Priorat in the South are designated as Vinos de Denominaciones de Origen Calificada. Certification labels will appear on every approved bottle from each of the regulated regions.

Known for wines that are among the longest cellar aged in the world, today consumers will find aging requirements of Crianza, Reserva, and Gran Reserva appearing on the front labels of the best wines of Spain. Reserva’s and Gran Reserva wines are only produced in the best of vintages and have a minimum of 3 years cellar/bottle aging prior to sale. Most of those wines come from the Rioja DOCa which is comprised of three sub-areas: (west to east) Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Baja, where early ripening Tempranillo(also known by synonyms Cencibel, Tinto Fino, Tinta de Toro, and Uli de Llebre), traditionally aged in American oak barrels, is king. Grapes from Rioja Baja, being a hotter and dryer landscape are usually blended with the harvests from the cooler vineyards to the West. Rioja also produces a considerable quantity of white wine which may or may not be aged in oak from the local grape, Viura, a synonym for Macabeo.

West of Rioja there is an emerging wine region along the Duero River which runs into Portugal.  West to East we find the rustic red wines of Toro DO, the region Rueda DO, known for its white wines, and then most importantly, Ribera del Duero DO, boasting the highest vineyard elevations in Spain.  It also produces Vega Sicilia, an international blend, which is among Spain’s most expensive and highly sought wines. Another important DO, north of the River Ebro, is Navarra.  Long known for its rosados(rose’), today we are seeing great success with contemporary winemaking using the Southern Rhone workhorse, Grenache(Garancha) in age-worthy blends. Another region in the foothills of the Pyrenees, to the East of Rioja, an emerging DO, Somontano is producing quality wines from international varieties, including perhaps Spain’s best Chardonnay.

Long isolated and independent in the Northwest lies autonomous Galicia, and the important DO, Rias Baixas. A land where the Albarino grape is champion, this is Spain’s land of rivers with the countries coolest, wettest wine region(and best seafood). Unlike any other Spanish region, the name of the grape variety appears on the labels of wines from this DO.

In the center of the country lies its largest vineyard area and DO, La Mancha. This plateau area produces 40% of Spain’t total wine production, on 55% of its total vineyard acreage, but little gets outside domestic consumption.  It is also home to the worlds most widely planted white wine grape variety, Aire’n, most of it grown right here.

Perhaps the most exciting and innovative Spanish wine production today is occurring across the Southeastern regions, like Jumilla DO, near Valencia. In Catalunya, home to the innovative Torres wine family, there are world class wines being produced from Garancha and Carinena(carigan) blends aged in French oak casks in Priorat DO. In the Penedes DO, long known for its white wines from native grapes, we now are seeing dramatic improvement on their red wines(vino tinto) blended with Grenache.  Penedes is also the center of Spain’s traditional method sparkling wine industry, known as Cava DO.Most Cava is blanc de blanc, being a blend of white native varieties, like Macabeo and Parellada. Increasingly, Chardonnay grapes are making their way into the traditional blends, with the second fermentation occurring in the same bottle. Wonderful ‘pink’ sparklers are also being produced from blends based in Garancha.

For more than 500 years, the wine most associated with Spain has been the fortified Sherry produced in the Andalusian region of Jerez - Xeres - Sherry. Grapes have grown on these distinct soils for thousands of years, even through the occupation by the Moors who encouraged raisin production and the distillation sciences. In fact, the English word, Sherry, has it origins in the Moorish name for Jerez: Sherish. As with Port and Maderia, the sea transport export market heavily influenced the development of the fortified wines of Jerez into the Sherry known today.In light of export demand, an early regulatory guild was formed for growers and producers in the late 15th century, effectively controlling the harvest, the aging and commercial practices for Sherry. Today, more than 80% of all Sherry produced is exported.El Puerto de Santa Maria and Sanlucar de Barrameda are principal production and shipping centers.

Sherry is based for the last two hundred years or so on the Palomino grape grown in the chalky albariza soils in and around Jerez, and the unique, fractional blending solera systems employed by the regions bodegas. Blended as is NV Champagne, Sherry includes juice from the grapes Pedro Ximenez for sweetness and Moscatel for color. After pressing, the juice is evaluated and classified; the finest going into Fino class, the balance into Oloroso class. Finos include Manzanilla(rarest flor), Fino and Almontillado Sherries, and here a thin layer of yeast film, flor, inhibits their oxidation while aging. Finos are fortified  with a grape spirit-sherry mix to around 15%abv. Oloroso’s include Olorosos, Palo Cortado, most Cream sherries and Rayas, which oxidize while aging due to little or no flor , and gradually darken their body and color. Following fermentation, they are fortified to 18%abv. In the solera, new wines are blended with older wines over and over again to create a consistent bodega style.  All sherries finish dry until the addition of a vino dulce to the desired level of sweetness.

Sitting in a tapas restaurant with friends the other evening, our table was filled, end to end,  with a broad tapestry of savory small plates.  Displayed in front of us was a representation of the diversity of today’s Spain. Unity with autonomy, quality with time honored and rustic traditions, an expanding world export market with native and a few international grape varieties, today’s Spanish wine industry seems to be a contradiction. Here we find a revitalized tapestry of cultures and indigenous grapes that reflect what is unique about old world tradition in the winds of modern winemaking. The influence within from visionaries like Miguel Torres, combined with the regional regulatory bodies(Consejos Reguladores), and even the innovative, independent producers of the Vino de la Tierra table wine category, has the Spain of today making the best wines in their history for export markets. Spain has been revitalized.Savvy wine drinkers have great opportunities today to travel across the diversity that is Spain, one glass at a time.Damn, I love drinking a revitalized Spain!

Salud!

Long isolated and independent, the Portugal wine industry is today making great strides in producing  value driven, consistent quality wines.  Winemaking here pre-dates the Roman occupation two thousand years ago, and even as royal Henry the Navigator establish new global trade routes in the 15th century, it was not until the Methuen Treaty with England in 1703, with its formalized tariff structure, that Portugal wines began to emerge from the rustic shadows. A sea voyage then to Portsmouth or Dover was tough on the simple wines of Portugal, and adding brandy to arrest the fermentation of the sweet grapes from the Douro Valley was the solution.

The English quickly set up Port houses along the sea mouth of the Douro River(Oporto DOC), controlling production, shipping and grape prices.  In response to the foreign control of their export product, the Portuguese created the worlds first demarcated zone, the Alto Douro, effectively nationalizing Port production in 1756.  When Port production again began to lose its way, dictator John Franco in 1907 signed a decree that controlled the manufacture, sale, control and export of the definitive wine of Portugal.  What has followed are decades of formed cooperatives, guilds and regulatory bodies that today control the unique qualities of the fortified wine known as Port.

A maritime climate of warm summers and cool, wet winters combines with a rugged topography for Douro’s three vineyard sub-regions, the Baixo Corgo, the Cima Corgo(highest vineyard ratings) and the Douro Superior. In this Port production region of around 64,000 acres there are more than 33,000 growers!  Soil of the Douro Valley is primarily pre-Cambrian schist and more than 80 indigenous grape varieties can be used in the production of Port. However, only five(5) varieties are recommended by the governing body, Casa do Douro: Touriga National, Touriga Francesca, Tinta Borraca, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Cao. A unique and complex vineyard ranking system called cadastro is utilized, where points are added and subtracted on the basis of a quintas(farm)/vineyards soil composition, slope. stoniness, altitude, exposure/aspect, and grape varieties that determines how much each is allowed to produce.  From their steep, terrace vineyards of rich volcanic basalt soils, growers may also include three white Port grape varieties: Gouveil, Malvasia Fina, and Viosinho. Fermentation is halted by typically adding grape spirits, which brings the alcohol level to around 20%.  A finished Port, determined by House style, will have residual sugar levels ranging from 8 to 12%.

Pipes / barrels of fermented juice are sent down river, to be blended and aged in the warehouses or lodges of the shippers, typically to the south side of the Douro’s mouth, a humid spot called,  Vila Zova de Gaia.  With little evaporation loss in this unique climate, the cellar masters of the Port houses will in about two years time determine which type of wine will be produced.  Most are blended with juice from other years and cask aged to become Ruby or Tawny.  If a single vintage is declared it can become Late Bottled Vintage or a Vintage Port, which ages in bottle. The rarest of all Ports is called Colheita, less than 1% of all Port produced, is a single vintage Tawny that has been aged in cask at least 7 years!

In the mid-Atlantic, about 600 miles south of Oporto lies the home of another Portuguese wine that starts life just like Port.  First settled in the 15th century by Portuguese colonists, Madeira is home to the Noble grapes of Bual and Malvasia which are planted widely in the low lands of this rugged volcanic island and fermented on their skins to produce moderately sweet wines of smoky or raisin character.   Climbing upward above 1300 feet and beyond are the Noble grape varieties of Verdelho and Sercial, which are fermented dry, but not on their skins, and then fortified to produce wines that may or may not be sweet.  What makes Madeira different than Port is that these wines are then slowly cooked in a process called, estufagem, which slowly oxidizes the wine prior to aging to create extraordinary flavors and aromas.

Back on the mainland, a small peninsula of a wine region South of Lisbon is also know for its fortified wines.  Setu’bal, is a DOC(demarcated region of controlled origin)  that permits only three types of the Muscat grape in the production of Moscatel de Setu’bal and Setu’bal wines. It is different from the Port process in that the grape must once fortified goes through a five or six month maceration period prior to aging in cask a minimum of four or five years. Maritime climates here give way to more Mediterranean influences as we go further South along the coast of Portugal. Wide rolling plains dominate the region of Alentejo, which produces half of the worlds supply of cork!

After joining the European Union in 1986, Portugal brought its wine laws in line with the rest of the Union, and today most of its still wines are produced by cooperatives and negociants. Combined with financial assistance from EU programs, Portuguese wine quality has never been higher or more consistent. At the top of the regulated quality pyramid are the 25 DOC regions, the largest being Vinho Verde(Minho) in the North bordering Spain.   Here, the famous ‘green wine’ is produced in white and also red styles, with its high acids and a slight spritz.  Intended to be consumed young, this wine is a great match for most sea foods and a perfect refresher for the Summer heat. Other important DOC regions in the North include Oporto and the Douro, where more than half of the regions production is cooperative produced table wine.

South of the city of Oporto, the Central region begins and within it are the high production DOC regions of the Dao and Estremadura with the sub-region of Colares, where grape vines are planted on sand dunes. With its warm Mediterranean climate, Estremadura is Portugals largest wine production region. Due to the volume of these regions, great values can be found in the quality designations just below the DOC’s, in the IPR’s and Vinho Regional table wines.

With more than 200 unique, indigenous castas(grapevines), a history of export, and higher quality being produced by its growers and negociant firms, Portugal today represents great values for wine lovers to discover. More Portuguese table wines are becoming available every day through local wine merchants and e-commerce traders alike. And with each bottle of Vinho Verde or Touriga National blend from the Dao, we get to discover the exciting new old world history being produced by the quality wines of Portugal.

A Sua Saude! (to Your Health!)

Red Grape Maceration

Sweet violet-blue berries are harvested in the fall, the stems removed , and vatted to begin maceration. Red wine principally earns its structure and personality from the extract of maceration, and its fermentation of sugars and tannins of those grapes.  Its the environment in which the wine are grapes grown and the patient skills of the winemaker, with a little cellar aging, that can turn that chemistry into bottled poetry.  But it is the opaque, dark skinned grape where it all begins. Sitting aloft hundreds of red grape varieties is the king of grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon, all power and structure.

Typical aromas of Cabernet Sauvignon are black cherry, black and red currants, with hints of mint, pencil shavings and vanilla.  This thick skinned, late season harvested grape has proven to be adaptable to many environments worldwide and is among the most tannic of grapes.  In cooler climates it maintains its high acid, but can take on vegetative traits. As a result of its power and structure, this long lived varietal shines only after years of bottle aging.  It is proven to be the cross-pollinated child of two older Bordeaux varieties, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc.

Another high acid world traveler is the varietal Syrah, known by the synonym Shiraz in the New World.  A workhorse in Southeastern Australia, this noble grapes home is the Rhone Valley of France where today more than 50% of the world’s crop is planted.  With an opaque hue from heavily pigmented, thick skins and great extraction, Syrah is all about fruit and spice.  In the warmer climates where it ripens fully, the fruit is firmly up front.  In cooler environments or seasons, spice aromas and flavors tend to dominate.  Look to Syrah for aromas and flavors of blackberries, raspberries, smoke, baked earth, pepper and chocolate.

Piedmont Nebbiolo

Nebbiolo is Italy’s answer to powerfully tannic, high acid red grapes that can age for decades. Usually not a fruit driven wine, Nebbiolo is all about aroma and structure.  Known by the synonym, Spanna, in its native Piedmont, where it produces the noble varieties Barolo and Barbaresco, this grape is one of the most tannic red wine grapes in the world. As a result, the aromas of cherries, roses, violets and tar, typically get pushed aside by the wines firm, dry structure.  When pulled from a cellar following years of aging, it can be one of the world’s great red wine varietals.  Nebbiolo is a terrific pairing for cold weather, hearty meals and game dishes.  Not very much Nebbiolo is grown outside its foggy, ancestral home of Piedmont.

Staying in Italy, we find another high acid grape, Sangiovese, and its clones. A warm climate grape prone to oxidation and low extract, look for an orange edge to its wines.  The wines of Chianti, Vino Nobile de Montepulciano, Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino are all based on clones of the Sangiovese grape.  Look for this grape to have a rustic, dry cherry nose and flavors of sour cherry, spice, orange peel and licorice.  With its good acid and modest tannins, this grape shines with tomato bases sauces.  High acid foods can also find a companion with Zinfandel.  This ‘American’ grape is known as Primitivo in Italy and Crljenack in its ancestral home of Sovenia.  Thin skinned and uneven to ripen, when overripe produces powerful, alcoholic wines.  Look for spice, red and black fruit aromas and flavors with enough character to stand up to barbecue.

Generally, high acid wines of tannic structure need time in the bottle to come together.  Gamay is one acidic grape that is of modest tannins, and as a result, its red fruits personality can usually be enjoyed in its youth. As we turn our attention to wines of lower acid and tannin, we find a noble grape that is the most planted varietal in Bordeaux and a variety that grows well in very few places.  With thinner skins than Cabernet and an earlier ripening schedule, Merlot, tends to be richly expressive, but softer and fleshier.  Aromas and flavors are usually found to be black cherry and black plums with prune or spice.  It is truly an International variety, but few places outside of Bordeaux can create a noble effort with grapey Merlot.

A grape variety known for its propensity to mutate is Pinot Noir.  Grown in Burgundy for at least 500 years, it is estimated that it has 200 - 1000 clones(Pinot Grigio, Pinot Blanc, etc.)  Broad, expansive aromas typify this grape of modest tannins.  Look for a personality of cherries, strawberries, raspberries, forest floor and a gamey-ness that gives as much on the nose as it does in the mouth.  Know as Pinot Nero in Italy, and Spatburgunder in Germany, where it is the most widely planted red grape, this grape is fickle. It prefers well drain soils in coolish environments, and will lose complexity if it warms or ripens quickly.  It can be the most sensual of wines, and is a versatile match for many dishes.

Grenache is a modest acid and pigment blender that does well in hot environments. It is a principal component of the great wines of the Southern Rhone, and has become one of the most widely planted red wine grapes in the world.  With origins in Spain, Grenache is typically rustic in style and can be high alcohol in warm climates.  Fleshy strawberry, sour cherry, and cranberry character tends to dominate aroma and palate.  The current wave of “GSM” efforts in Australia, and consistent producers in the Rhone are today offering the best expressions of this grape.

Spain’s Tempranillo is a rustic, thick skinned grape that is usually recognized by its leather and wood aromas in the wine glass.  It can often taste older than it is, offering aromas and flavors of strawberries, cherries, vanilla and road dust.  Across the border in Portugal’s Douro Valley , Tempranillo is called Tinta Roriz, and has many synonyms internationally.

Barbera and Dolcetto of Piedmont, Cabernet Franc from the Loire, Malbec of Cahors and Argentina, and many international varieties continue to make their way to dining tables around the world. Rhone varieties, including Mourvedre, South Africa’s Pinotage, and Carmenere of Chile, are today of  more consistent high quality than ever before.  It all starts with the grape, vitis viniferia. Maceration extracts and fermentation converts red grapes, and we mortals get the opportunity to share a drink with the God’s.

Chardonnay grapes at pressing

Pressing the juice from the harvested golden berries, you will find that it runs clear, almost without color. Flesh and juice of these grape berries are the principal components of the finished white wine.  Acidity and sugar, both present in the flesh of the grape, are extracted into the juice that is fermented into our favorite wines.  Grown worldwide, Muscat grapes are a large family variety that goes back to the beginnings of recorded history, and may well be the ancestor from which all other wine grapes descend.  Of all varieties of vitis vineferia, Muscat smells and tastes the most grape-like and has been found to have high concentrations of the antioxidant flavornoids, in quantities as high as some red grape varieties.  In can be found in dry, sweet and sparkling wine styles.

Another world explorer,  a grape that is among the highest in natural acidity is Sauvignon Blanc.  Depending on ripeness at harvest and growing environment, this aromatic noble grape is richly perfumed with notes of kiwi, fig, gooseberry and grapefruit.  It can take on a gun-flint or smoky character, especially when oaked, as in its synonym Fume Blanc.  One of the worlds great food wines, Sauvignon Blanc, can have razor sharp acidity and be as tart as green apple, or it can become honey.  When blended with Semillon and Muscadelle, as it is in the Sauternes region, these grapes purposely infected with the late season fungus, botrytis cinerea, or noble rot, can produce some of the worlds richest and long lived honeyed dessert wines.

Although its origins are in Bordeaux, the variety Semillon is today enjoying a Renaissance in the vineyards of the Southern Hemisphere.  Mostly a blending varietal with Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay, on its own it can have an exotic personality exposed by honeyed lime and citrus notes.  If allowed to become overripe, it can display peach, apricot and vanilla custard tones.

Another white grape variety that sings when effected by noble rot is Riesling.  A highly aromatic, high acid grape, it is also known by the synonyms of White Riesling or Johannisberg.  This is a cool climate preference champion found in unforgiving landscapes, like the Germany’s Rheingau or the Alsace region of neighboring France.  Wherever grown, Washington State or Australia, Riesling typically maintains its fresh lime scent and taste.  A balance of stone fruits, green apples, tropical fruits swimming with notes of minerals, slate or smoke can make this noble grape a very rich experience as a table or a dessert wine.

Riesling with Noble Rot

Multi-faceted Chenin Blanc is another camelion in the world of white wine grapes.  It can be a rich honeyed nectar when produced from noble rot, and sticky sweet.  In its home, the central Loire, it is a workhorse and can be found dry or sweet, still or sparkling.  Highly aromatic, Chenin Blanc, known as Steen in South Africa, is a grape of substance and age-ability.  Expect to find aromas of wheat berries, straw flowers or toasted brioche, wrapped in clotted cream and applepear.

Known as the winemakers grape, Chardonnay is grown in almost every wine-producing country on the planet.  It happens to be very adaptable, alone has an inherent neutrality of flavor, and really takes to spending time in oak barrels where it can adopt vanilla-butterscotch flavors. Common cellar treatments of barrel fermentation, malo-lactic fermentation and sur lie aging with batonnage produce an easy drinking, dry white wine. Low acid Chardonnay gives us green apples and lemons with the minerals of non-oaked Chablis, and rich, roundly textured melons and tropical fruits with smoky spice when treated with oak in the New World styles.  When its acids are still high and not fully ripe(sugars), it also finds its way into the worlds best Champagne! Regardless of treatment, this noble champion of white wine grapes is usually bigger in the mouth than it is on the nose.

Imagine a white grape variety with a highly aromatic profile of rose petals, lychee nut, sandalwood, grapefruit, ginger and nutmeg.  These floral/spice notes are just as powerful on the palate as they are on the nose,  and come from a quick ripening, low acid varietal that can result in high alcohol.  With origins in the Italian Tyrol, Gewurztraminer, today has its largest acreage in the Alsace.  It can be produced in styles that are bone dry to sweet, as well as sparkling and the late-harvested dessert wine Vendange Tardive.  It can be a terrific complement to spicy Asian foods.

With its cold continental climate, Alsace is also home to low acid Pinot Gris.  It is the synonym for Italy’s  Pinot Grigio, where it is usually refreshingly crisp and high in acid with notes of apples, almonds and citrus. In this Mediterranean climate it can even produce tones of flint or steel and finds that it is in its element with local sea foods dressed with lemon juice. Today, this varietal is the most imported white wine coming into the United States.

Cordrieu in the Rhone Valley of Southeastern France is ground zero for low acid Viognier. Richly aromatic, it has a varied flavor profile.  Picked early and it tends to be green in character.  If it is influenced by oak, it may produce wood, spice and vanilla notes.  Unoaked, it can have an intensely fruity aroma and rich stone fruit flavors. Profile changes like these can make it challenging to know what will come out of the bottle, unless you know the producer.

Pinot Blanc, Marsanne, Rousanne, Grenache Blanc, Tokay, Trebbiano, Malvasia, Albarino, and Austria’s Gruner Veltliner are among the hundreds of white grape varieties that have not traveled far from their homes.  Yet, each of these varieties has its own place in regional cuisines and their cultures.  Like those listed above, they are noble in their own way and can offer wonderful expressions of fruit and place.  Juice from these berries is as individual as each of us, with personalities that marry wonderfully with foods from the regions in which they are grown.  Our exploration of these fresh and wonderful grape varieties can take us around the world, comparing styles and personalities as we go.  That is quite a feat when it is just the juice!

“Drink it,
and remember in every
drop of gold,
in every topaz glass,
in every purple ladle,
that autumn labored
to fill the vessel with wine;
and in the ritual of his office,
let the simple man remember
to think of the soil and of his duty,
to propagate the canticle of the wine. ”

Pablo Neruda

A return to our wine cultures birth place seems appropriate to me for this reports end of year anniversary, and our twenty-first posting.  Perhaps no more important than for quality value wines, great wine continues to be made first in the mild climates of some of the worlds best vineyards.  Vines cover more than 20 million acres across the globe, and have been commercially farmed for centuries, always with a quest to grow the very best fruit possible.  With consistent, high quality farming chronically influenced by nature, it seems that growing great wine grapes should be equally as challenging, if not more so.

Our grape vine is part of the genus, Vitis,  and a species(viniferia)  native to Europe and west Asia.  Within its family we have variety which is a sub-species, like Chardonnay.  From it we can create a clone, which is an asexual reproduction, a copy, descended from a single plant by cuttings.  Mutations are variety vines that have developed different characteristics as they grow; Pinot Blanc being a mutation of Pinot Noir.  A cross is also possible; derived from a sexual reproduction of two different sub-species, as Cabernet Sauvignon is the progeny of Cabernet Franc & Sauvignon Blanc.

The vines annual cycle growth begins each Spring with bud break from the dormant, woody canes of Winter, evolves to a self-pollinating flowering, and then berry set marks the transition from flower to fruit. As warmer soils and abundant Summer sunshine push the vine,  a maturing veraison occurs, when red grapes begin to change color and the fruits sugars translocate from leaf to fruit. Repeated each growing season, the vines time frame from bud break to harvest can be as varied from 110 to 200 days, dependent on its environment or as the French call it, terrior.  Grapevines take an average of 6 years to reach maturity, with a vineyards first grape crop usually occurring in the third year cycle, or its ‘third leaf’.

Through photosynthesis,  chlorophyll in the leaves converts sunlight to carbon dioxide and water, and then into sugar and oxygen.  Ideal sugar production takes place between 68 - 86 degree F, and is slowed outside of this range.  Very hot Summer temperatures can give the fruit cycle a life-saving rest period.  As water evaporates from the leaf, we get transpiration; as sugars break down becoming an energy source for the vine, respiration occurs; and the as nutrients are moved from areas within the vine, we have what is known as, translocation.  Vines are considered “in balance” when the grower recognizes the relationship between soil/root system and the number of potential leaves it can maintain.  Shoot length, density, girth, etc. are all considerations in producing a consistent, high-quality grape crop.

The world’s vineyards can be found in temperate climates, influenced by bodies water, 30 - 50 degrees North or South of the equator.  Although soil compositions vary around the world, what is generally accepted is that the soils structure, usually not very fertile,  must enable the vines roods to have regulated access to water.  Few basic soil nutrients are required by the vine, namely nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.  Knowledgeable vineyard managers choose a region, known as a macroclimate, for its environment, a mesoclimate(the environment of a particular vineyard), for its unique aspect, and its microclimate, the area surrounding the canopy, for variables which they can control.

Whereas sustainable viticulture, has no set rules, it incorporates the vineyard “scientific method” with a “big picture” vision, compared to chemically free, organic growers, who attempt to encourage bio-diversity, in part by eliminating all synthetic products. Bio-dynamic viticulture practices, developed by R. Steiner in 1929, have a specific regiment; an ecosystem that goes beyond bio-dynamic and recognizes not just the vineyard, but the entire universe as its ecosystem.  Each of these philosophies deals with a multitude of soil pests. UC Davis labs have identified at least 55 virus-like grapevine diseases alone.  Mildew, fungal diseases, the fan leaf virus, spread by the nematode soil pest Xiphinema index, have long been fought in the vineyard.  The root eating louse, phylloxera, with its feeding wounds causing galls, allowing bacteria and fungi to invade the vine, ultimately rotting the root, was responsible for damaging the venerable vineyards of Europe in the late 19the century.

Those viticulturalists who understand their environment and best deal with the seasonal variables usually produce the best fruit, and its vineyards producing the best wine.  I know its technical, but it can be impossible to identify and understand the very best wines from far away places unless you know the Basic Dirt!

Just the appearance of that carbon dioxide gas rising from the elegant, fluted stemware in the form of small, lofty bubbles makes me want to celebrate.  This is the Season of the year when most corks are popped, yet sparkling wines make up just slightly more than 4% of all U.S. wine sales.  According to the Wine Institute, sparkling wine consumption is on the decline, as U.S. consumers purchased 3% fewer bottles of bubbles in 2008 compared to the previous year.  It can’t be the French, I thought, but the EU Digest reports that they are drinking more than 50% less than they did in the 1960’s.  Although they consume more than 50% of the domestic Champagne produced, with over 70% of the balance sent to Great Britain, the U.S.A. and Germany, the French are today producing less sparkling wine.  Champagne houses produced 5% less in 2008 compared to the previous year, as Moet Hennessy Louis Vitton , producers of Dom Perignon, reported recently that sales volume slumped 35% in the first quarter of this year.  “Consumers are looking for cheaper sparkling wines from Spain, Italy and California”, announced the June 2009 edition of ReportLinker.

What we know as Champagne has its vineyard origins in the Roman occupation of Gaul, two thousand years ago.  Due to the cool northerly climate, it was typical for its still wines to ferment a second time as Springtime temperatures warmed.  It had become common for the English importers to add brandy or sugar prior to bottling of this still wine, and with their development of stronger glass bottles, the Champagne we know of today began to take shape.  Today, there are over 30,000 hectares in 320 ranked villages that lie within the original 1927 boundaries of this famous AOC.  Highly controlled, only Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier(for body and fruitiness) grapes are the allowed to be planted here.  Grown in chalky soils, the first(free run) and second pressings of fruit may be used.  Following fermentation,  the house Cellar Master can then blend this juice with an older vintage, creating the vin de cuvee’, based on its house style(non-vintage). Once bottled, a bit of sugar and yeast are added, and over the next 3 - 4 months a second fermentation occurs in the bottle, producing  that wonderful carbon dioxide gas and dead yeast cells. After years of extended cellaring, the plug of lees are force out by the created gas(de’gorgement), a sugar syrup added, and the finished wine is corked, caged, and ready for market.  This then is known as Methode Champanoise.

Sparkling wine by this method is produced outside of the Champagne region.  In France it is labeled Cremant, as in Cremant d’ Alsace, and regional grapes may be used.  Cava from Spain is Methode Champanoise, again using regional grape varieties.  Consistently good quality and values, I like Cristilino, Codorniu, and Segura Viudas Cava Bruts, from the Penede’s region.  Many U.S. houses use the traditional Champagne method and also Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes with great success, such as Roederer Estate and Gloria Ferrer(the family behind Spains’ Freixenet).

When the second fermentation is not in the bottle, but in a tank, the process is called Charmat or bulk process. Italy’s Spumante from the Piedmont region, and Prosecco from the prosecco grape of the Veneto region are products of this process.  In Germany, this bulk method produces fine sparkling wines known as Sekt.  It is typical for these bottles of bubbles to be labeled by level of sweetness, as in Secco(dry) or Dulce(sweet).

With so much quality sparkling wine in the value marketplace, isn’t it time we all celebrate that perfectly roasted chicken or the anticipated tummy-hug that is your favorite seasonal soup with a glass of Blanc de Blanc? Just the pop of the cork, or the rising stream of tiny bubbles makes many wine lovers happy.  The bright acidity and palate cleansing spritz of sparkling wine makes them a natural pairing for so many foods: soup to nuts. Cheeses, too, love sparkling wine. A Pear Salad with Goat Cheese will not be the same once it is joined by a glass of chilled Champagne.  So, let us pop a cork(quietly) and raise a glass of sparkling wine over our next meal.  For this Holiday Season, and beyond, quality Sparklers from around the world truly give us so much more to Celebrate!

Cheers to our good health!!